Chapter 161: Chapter161-Ownership
"John, you're finally back! If you hadn't returned soon, Qing was planning to head back to the Deep Forest to drag you back himself."
Seeing John's return, everyone approached him eagerly. Exiled Immortal continued, "When are we setting off?"
"My initial plan was to leave tomorrow after a good night's rest, but... judging by your expressions, you all seem quite impatient."
"We've been waiting for this! If it weren't for the fear of losing contact, I would have already set off for Spartonia by myself!" Qing patted his chest loudly and laughed, "Let's not wait until tomorrow. Let's leave now!"
Upon hearing this, John smirked but didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked at Lily.
"Lily, are you okay with this? We don't necessarily have to go to Spartonia. There are many other options. If you really don't want to go, we can split up."
"It's okay. I also want to see Spartonia. But once we're there, I'll probably need everyone to protect me since I don't have much combat ability."
"Don't worry, second sister, we'll definitely protect you!" Exiled Immortal chimed in with a smile.
"Besides, it's not like you can't use any magic at all, right? That limitation seems too severe. Maybe only certain magic patterns won't work."
Exiled Immortal reassured her and gave John a knowing look. John understood and said, "No time like the present. Let's set off now. If things get too tough, Qing can just fight our way out of the city."
"No problem! Let's see who dares to stop me! I'll smash their heads in with a single punch!"
"There's no need to be so violent..."
...
Meanwhile, in the Deep Forest, at the labyrinth!
"As you can see, Master John has left to continue his journey. However, before leaving, he left some items for you."
Elowen beckoned, and the guards behind him brought forth a chest.
"Inside are weapons collected by Master John during his travels. These are far sharper than the ones you currently have. Master John intended these as rewards for your excellent performance.
However, I think it would be too easy to just hand them over. You should know that the Elven tribe never lacks brave warriors!
Only the bravest warriors are worthy of these divine weapons.
Conveniently, the Elven guard is stationed near the labyrinth.
I've decided on today's assessment: each of you may choose any warrior to fight.
I don't expect you to win; you just need to last ten minutes, and the weapons will be yours.
Of course, if anyone fails, their weapon will go to the Elven warrior until they can challenge and win it back.
Does anyone have any objections?"
With John as a shining example and having demonstrated so many times, Elowen had grasped the essence of his training methods firmly.
Just as John had explained to him, during training, only the roles of officer and trainee mattered, with no personal feelings involved.
Only this way could absolute fairness and justice be achieved.
Even among the fifteen people, there were friends who had fought alongside Elowen and younger ones he had high hopes for, but all were treated equally.
"You've had ample time to rest, so let's not waste any more time. Aeris, bring over three squads."
"Yes!"
Aeris nodded and within five minutes returned with three squads, a total of seventy-five people, who stood behind Elowen.
"These people are your potential opponents. You have five minutes to decide who you want to challenge. Once the five minutes are up, the matches will begin immediately.
If anyone hesitates and can't make a choice, that's fine.
I'll choose for you, and I'll be your opponent."
This assessment was a sudden idea from Elowen.
He originally planned to have everyone enter the labyrinth and hunt monsters in groups of three.
The group that hunted the most monsters within a limited time would win.
However, Elowen reconsidered.
The difference in combat power was fixed from birth, making this somewhat unfair, especially for someone like Meryl who had a natural fear of monsters.
Such an assessment would be extremely difficult for her.
If grouping was necessary, Meryl would have to team up with Babylon and Eden to perform well. Otherwise, she would only drag the team down.
Fortunately, Master John left these rewards, allowing Elowen to change the assessment content on a whim.
The five minutes passed in the blink of an eye, and everyone had chosen their opponents. From Elowen's perspective, their choices were quite reasonable.
The three girls each chose three recently joined female warriors from the guard. While their strengths weren't perfectly matched, the differences weren't too great either.
What surprised Elowen the most were Babylon and Eden.
The two first asked Aeris about who was considered the strongest in the squad.
After learning the identity, they both chose to challenge Aeris.
Their courage was commendable, but they lacked a bit of rationality. The kids didn't know, but Elowen was well aware of Aeris's true strength.
To say the least, among the nearly three hundred guards stationed near the labyrinth, not one of them could match Aeris.
This guy's combat power was something even Elowen had to respect.
Aeris was not only stronger than Elowen by a significant margin but also far from a wise choice for Babylon and Eden to challenge in a moment of hot-headedness.
Of course, Elowen wouldn't give them a heads-up.
He had made it clear: if they couldn't win, they wouldn't get the weapons John left behind.
They had to bear the consequences of their choices.
"Since you have all chosen your opponents, let's not delay. We can start now... Meryl, you go first."
Upon hearing this, Meryl was momentarily stunned but quickly stood up and walked slowly to stand before Elowen.
Opposite her, a valiant elven warrior looked at her with an appreciative gaze and said with a smile, "Little sister, I will go easy on you. Ten minutes, I believe you can hold on."
"I-I will!"
Meryl bit her lip lightly, silently encouraging herself.
As Elowen announced the start of the duel, Meryl immediately drew two short daggers from her waist, holding one in a standard grip and the other in a reverse grip.
"Oh? Such weapons are uncommon, little sister. Are you sure you can handle them well?"
"I-I can!"
Meryl's response was met with a swift arrow shooting towards her!
It was clear that the female warrior wasn't aiming to kill; otherwise, just that one strike could have ended Meryl's life!
The arrow whizzed past Meryl's cheek, embedding itself deeply into the tree trunk behind her, causing splinters to burst out in all directions!
Seeing this, Meryl was startled but kept her composure, her eyes fixed intently on the female warrior's fingers, watching as she drew her bow and nocked another arrow.
At the same moment, Meryl lowered her stance, dodging the attack and taking the opportunity to close the distance rapidly!
But, as a skilled archer, the female warrior was well aware of Meryl's intentions.
Knowing she would be at a disadvantage if Meryl got too close, she ensured that wouldn't happen!
Three arrows were nocked simultaneously.
The female warrior drew her bow like a full moon, not aiming directly at Meryl but anticipating her next move. She then released the bowstring.
"Did she miss?"
As Meryl furrowed her brows in confusion, she saw the three arrows converge, blocking her left, right, and forward paths.
Such precise skill forced Meryl to retreat, widening the gap between her and the warrior.
The situation seemed to reach a stalemate.
If Meryl couldn't get close, she would be worn down by the continuous attacks until her stamina was exhausted, leading to defeat.
However, forcing her way in would expose her to multiple arrows from various angles, leaving no opening!
Watching the battle, Elowen's eyes lit up.
"Fischer's archery skills have improved significantly. At this rate, the next captaincy contest might be uncertain for Aeris!"